A California family told police that they escaped from river pirates in South America after the group was held hostage while traveling through the Amazon last week, People magazine reported.

Travel bloggers Adam and Emily Harteau, as well as their 6-year-old daughter Colette and 3-year-old daughter Sierra, were found safe in Belém, Brazil on Wednesday after they were allegedly attacked by pirates the previous weekend.

The armed pirates allegedly held the family hostage in a room on their ship for more than eight hours, from 3:30 p.m. to midnight, and used the threat of violence to keep them trapped. The family could hear the pirates as they boarded and disembarked the boat, apparently stealing items that were onboard.

Though the family said they feared to leave the room, they told police that they escaped via water in the middle of the night, with the two children floating on a surfboard as their parents swam next to them.

The family then hid for 72 hours, they claimed, eating insects and fruit to survive, only coming out when they heard a nearby police boat.